Drinking water assessment of 4 locations from Ghaziabad , Uttar Pradesh

In this study drinking water samples from 4 different locations in Ghaziabad were collected by random grab sampling. These were analyzed for physiochemical and elemental parameters. The parameters tested were pH, Nitrate, Fluoride, Chloride,Sulphate, Total Dissolved solids, Hardness, Alkalinity, Calcium, Magnesium, Aluminium, Boron, Zinc, Selenium, Manganese, Iron, Chromium, Copper, Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic and Mercury.


Sample 1,Lohia Nagar
All physiochemical parameters were found to be under the maximum permissible range for drinking purposes.This is with the exception of fluoride which was observed to be 3.723 ppm in the water sample analyzed.
Fluoride is released into the ground water through weathering of primary silicates and associated accessory minerals 4 .Mineral fluorides are present in underground water structures in the form of leachates from fluorospar, Apatite, Cryolite and fluorosilicates [5][6] .When rain water percolates through the ground, fluoride ions are picked up 9.In arid regions with limited water recharge and with fluoride bearing minerals deposits present, the ground water becomes rich in fluoride 5 .It combines with the hydrochloric acid of stomach and leads to the formation of hydrogen fluoride which is highly ) Very low doses of fluoride (<0.6 mg/L) in water promote tooth decay.However, when consumed in higher doses (>1.5 mg/L), it leads to dental fluorosis or mottled enamel and excessively high concentration (>3.0 mg/L) of fluoride may lead to skeletal fluorosis 8 .

Sample 2,Sec-16
All physiochemical parameters were found to be under the maximum permissible range for drinking purposes.Except fluoride, the value for which was found to be 1.66 ppm.

Sample 3, Jatwara
All physiochemical parameters were found to be under the maximum permissible range for drinking purposes exceptnitrate and fluoride.The values for these were found to be 187.583and 3.472 ppm respectively for the water sample analyzed.Such high concentration of nitrate in drinking water may be attributed to the leaching of organic material biodegradation products into water sources.Nitrate has long been associated with the occurrence of blue baby disease in infants 9 or infantile methaemoglobinaemia, which is caused due to bacterial reduction of nitrate into nitrite in stomach 10 .

Sample 4, Sahibabad
The values for except Aluminium, Iron and fluoride were found to be high in the sample analyzed.The value for Aluminium was observed to be 228.88ppb which is higher than the IS prescribed limit of 200 ppb.The valuesfor Iron was recorded to be 4598.76ppb and for fluoride as 4.68 ppm.All other physiochemical parameters were found to be under the maximum permissible range for drinking purposes.
Long-term exposure to such high levels of Aluminum may lead to the occurrence of Alzheimer's disease 11 .Aluminium accumulation in the brain is proposed to be associated with neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and dialysis encephalopathy 12 .Aluminium negatively impacts neurotransmission, either by directly inhibiting the enzymes responsible or by affecting the physical properties of synaptic membranes 13 .
The principal forms of mineralized ferric iron found in soils are amorphous hydrous ferric oxide, maghemite, lepidocrocite, hematite,and goethite 13 .High amount of Iron leads to the growth of iron bacteria in the pipelines thereby deteriorating the microbiological quality of drinking water 14 .Excessive ingested iron can also cause excessive levels of iron in the blood because high iron levels can damage the cells of the gastrointestinal tract preventing them from regulating iron absorption 15 .

CONCLUSION
Drinking water from Lohia Nagar & Sector 16 couldbe used for drinking after removal of excess of fluoride.Also drinking water from Jatwara could be used for drinking after removal of excess of fluoride and nitrate.
Drinking water from Sahibabad could also be used for drinking after removal of excess of fluoride, Aluminium and Iron.